Duluth, January 11, 2024 – The White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI) hosted an in-person economic summit at the Gas South District Convention Center to connect Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA and NHPI) community members directly with federal resources and opportunities.
The event draws 200+ attendees and is the sixth in a series of regional economic summits launched by the Biden-Harris Administration in January 2023, was held in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration, U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Energy, the National Asian / Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce & Entrepreneurship (National ACE), and local leaders.
Representatives from federal agencies shared ways to effectively apply for federal procurement, jobs, grants, and programs – matching other summits held in Philadelphia, Chicago, Seattle, New York City, and Honolulu. Like previous events, attendees were also able to connect directly with senior Biden-Harris Administration officials and leaders.
“From day one, our Administration has been laser-focused on partnering with, and advocating for, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander workers, entrepreneurs, and businesses,” said U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai, who also serves as WHIAANHPI Co-Chair. “That is because President Biden and Vice President Harris understand how important our communities are to growing and driving our economy forward, from the bottom up and the middle out. Through the Economic Summits, we will continue to write the next chapter in our American story together—one of resilience and collective strength.”
“In this extraordinary moment for our country, it's important we harness AA and NHPI innovation and entrepreneurship to drive our nation forward,” said Deputy SBA Administrator Dilawar Syed. “AA and NHPI entrepreneurs have been an important part of the small business boom in Georgia and across America. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring entrepreneurs in all our communities have the resources they need to succeed.”
“Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders were devastated by the disproportionate economic impacts of the pandemic, and we saw how this impacted families, workers, and businesses here in the metro Atlanta area,” said Krystal Ka‘ai, Executive Director of WHIAANHPI and the President’s Advisory Commission on AA and NHPIs. “Today, we are making good on the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to expand economic opportunity and provide the tools community members need to recover and thrive. Because AA and NHPI small businesses are the backbone of our economy. And when they succeed, we all prosper.”
In January 2023, WHIAANHPI launched its AA and NHPI economic summit series following the release of the Biden-Harris Administration’s first-ever national strategy to advance equity and opportunity for AA and NHPI communities, which outlines agency commitments to strengthen capacity building over the next two years. On Feb. 16, 2023, President Biden also signed an Executive Order to strengthen the federal government’s equity mandate and formalize his goal of increasing the share of federal contracting dollars awarded to Small Disadvantaged Businesses by 50% by 2025.
